The real story today isn’t the Sharks’ signing of Antti Niemi — that was the real story yesterday.

Today, it’s all about what happens next now that the Sharks have one more NHL caliber goalie than they planned back on July 1 when they brought in Antero Niittymaki to form a tandem with Thomas Greiss or, maybe, Alex Stalock.

“We liked our goaltending as of yesterday. We like it even more today,” General Manager Doug Wilson said in explaining the decision to go after Niemi once the Chicago Blackhawks let him walk away.

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“When a player like this becomes available and he wants to come to your team — especially on a contract we feel fits our salary structure and you don’t have to give up anything to get him — you just have to make it happen.”

But how do Niittymaki and Greiss feel about Niemi’s arrival?

“It’s part of the business,” Niittymaki said when I reached him this afternoon. “It’s not a huge deal or anything. . . . Our goal here is to win a Stanley Cup. I think everybody knows that. They have to do what they feel like they need to do. I don’t have a problem with it.”

Niittymaki said he and the Sharks never really discussed the number of games he might be playing.

“They had Nabokov here who played 70 games a year. I never played 70 games a year. We never really talked about the plan or anything,” Niitymaki said. “I still feel the same. I’ve been in all kind of situations before. I’ve been the number one guy, I’ve been the backup and I’ve been something between. I never look at it and say I’m going to get these games and these games and these games. It’s a long year and there’s a lot of games. Anything can happen.”

Greiss, on the hand, was much more disappointed. He reads the handwriting on the wall.

“We like Thomas a lot, but when a player like Niemi becomes available you have to acquire the asset when you can and you go from there. It pushes Thomas probably into the number three spot,” Wilson said. “I’d be disappointed if he wasn’t disappointed.”

Greiss acknowledged that was the case.

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“I was hoping to make the next step,” he said. “It’s understandable they’re bringing in a Stanley Cup goalie, the first time they have that in the organization. At this point I understand that. From the other side, I want to play as much as I can.”

Has it reached the point where he thinks his best opportunity might come in another organization?

“I talked with Doug about it,” Greiss said. “We’ll see what happens.”

Wilson defers to Coach Todd McLellan when it comes to determining how many games each of his goalies will play. And McLellan, understandably, was politic in not tipping his hand.

“I think we’re blessed to have three goalies that can play in this league. All are at different stages of their careers, each has something left to prove,” the coach said. “We’ll go to training camp and see how things play out.”

****Niemi took part in a conference call from Raisio, Finland, but said he wants to get to San Jose as quickly as possible.

Longer contracts, presumably for bigger bucks, were reportedly available. How did he decide that San Jose’s one-year, $2 million offer was the one to take?

“I thought for me it was really important to get to a really good team and also a really good organization,” he said. “They really wanted me there, too, so it wasn’t too hard a decision after all.”

Chicago reporters wanted Niemi to talk about his broken ties with the Blackhawks, but the goalie declined to go down that road until someone asked what it will be like next season when he’s in net facing his old team.

“I think it’s going to be the most exciting games of the regular season next year,” Niemi said.”It’s going to be weird of course, but I think I’ll be extra thrilled in those games.”

Though both of San Jose’s new goalies hail from Finland, Niemi (27) said he and Niittymaki (30) don’t really know each other that well. But Wilson made a point of stressing how Niemi wanted to make sure his countryman was looped into the developments as contract talks heated up.

****Other players taking part in an informal practice at Sharks Ice liked the idea of acquiring a goalie who had won the Stanley Cup, but Dan Boyle also noted that there’s a down-side as well for the guys in the room.

“It’s tough,” he said. “I don’t even know the situation as far as who’s staying or who’s going, but you’ve got to do these moves sometimes to make yourself better.”

David Pollak

David Pollak has been following the NHL forever and at the Mercury News as an editor or reporter since 1987. For almost a decade he wrote about the Sharks as the paper's Fan in the Stands before joining the sports department in 2001. He became the Sharks beat writer before the 2007-08 season and began this blog at that time. You can also follow him on Twitter at @PollakOnSharks.

The current D situation is fine. They were in the top 10 in goals against and top 5 in penalty kill. Losing Blake is not a huge deal. A more experienced Demers will more than make up for him. The Sharks D is steady and if it needs a tweak, Wilson will make that move.

#31 AE – It was intentional! Others have already started having fun with this and I think Tank Girl is right about Finn jokes being around for a while.

Puckbubba

Niemi & Niittymaki are a good tandem. Niemi is an upgrade over Niittymaki but neither are as good as Nabokov. Everyone says you don’t need an all-star high-priced goalie these days but they forget Blackhawks won with Norris Trophy winner Duncan Keith and arguably the best defense in the league. With all due respect to Sharks defense they are not as good as the guys Niemi had in front of him last year. If he faulters Niittymaki is a good backup much better to have him there than Greiss. Until the Sharks strengthen the defense this team is not as good as last year’s Sharks team.

Long Time No Cup

“Post hoc ergo propter hoc” is the fallacy that links the Jamison departure to the Niemi signing. The connection is in the realm of black helicopters and sasquatch.

Someone asked Ben Hogan, the golfer, how to putt better. His answer: hit your irons closer to the hole.

Same thing with hockey defense: how do you play better defense? Keep the puck in the other team’s end.

sharkz

After thinking about it for a couple of days, I like the move for the simple reason that finding a replacement for Nittymaki mid-season (had he not panned out) would have been a nightmare. On the other hand, the pickings might be pretty good if we need to land a defenseman down the stretch. I’m calling the glass half full.

I liked the theory someone posted in the previous thread–That 2010/11 will be a 50/50 Finn-tandem, 2011/12 will be Niitymaki/Staylock, and 2012/13 will be Staylock/???. Obviously it’s pure speculation to say that, and that theory carries just as much weight as a 2013 Sasquatch/Chupacabra tandem (Aside: How much would you pay to see that?). But given the things that have happened, this theory makes a certain amount of sense.

Also: Welcome back people who took the summer off! You didn’t miss much. Just some talk about the newspaper industry in general and then we got into politics for no apparent reason. A lot of trolls, a lot of “Duog Wislon haz got 2 go!” and that’s about it. In hindsight, I kind of wish I had taken the summer off, too

Nick

Oh, also, for people who think Niemi was “terrible” last year, he didn’t allow a goal until his third start. That isn’t quite as long as Nabokov’s rookie debut, but it’s nothing to shake a stick at. He played pretty solidly throughout the season, with some freaking brilliant nights and some average nights and the occasional awful night. So, basically, exactly what you’d expect from a talented rookie.

Interestingly, his worst performances came immediately after the trade deadline when he’d officially won the #1 job. He picked it back up in time for the end of the regular season, and the post season is pretty much hostpry at this point.

So is he the second coming? Of course not. But the people who are saying he’s average at best and simply a by-product of a strong defensive corps are being disingenuous. He’s average at worst, and still young enough to mature if he decides to stay here. He’s an upgrade over Greiss (Who, yeah, I feel sorry for because he never got the chance to show his stuff, but on the other hand that’s business.) and he’s proven he can perform in big games when the pressure is on. So relax, chill out, don’t scream too loudly in September.

From some perspectives, I guess the more mediocre goalies on the roster, the better.

If Niemi was a main cog in winning the cup, Chicago would have made his signing a priority. Certainly, they had cap problems to deal with, but bottom line, not retaining Niemi was their choosen solution.

Again this year, the Hawks will rely upon some of the games best defensemen to lessen goalie pressure.

Months from now, I fear that some of you will have to reach the harsh realization that Blake and Nabby weren’t so bad afterall.

May I be proven wrong. JP

y

“Months from now, I fear that some of you will have to reach the harsh realization that Blake and Nabby weren’t so bad afterall.”

Blake, I will miss…Nabby on the other hand is still too close to the Sharks in St. Petersburg. Good riddance.

Nick

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I already miss both. Blake a little less, though… I didn’t mind his speed (or lack thereof) it was the penalties. It’s like he forgot what decade it was =/

Breakaway

Niemi stopped 129 of 136 shots on net in the WCF… those are pucks that the almighty Chicago D let get past them and didn’t send wide. He came up big in big pressure games when he needed to, something the Sharks goaltending position hasn’t had in a long time.

Tim Liao

In the end I still would prefer to have Hjalmarsson over Niemi because it seems the bigger hole was on defense and that hole is still there. I know Seto is sort of a bargain right not now but if Wilson can dangle Seto to Brian Burke and land Luke Schenn, he seriously needs to make that move. Vlasic seems to have hit a ceiling in his growth, history tells us Demers will probably experience a sophomore slump, Murray is average, Petricki is still young, Wallin is way overrated and overpaid, and Boyle is the only ‘go to’ guy but you can’t rely on him to do everything. So Wilson needs to seriously make a move on defense.

John Miatech

Niemi will make a fine tandem with Nittymaki while the Sharks look to Staylock to get a little more seasoning under his belt. I think the Sharks have upgraded just fine with two decent goalies to draw from, and the fact that one having helped win the cup never hurts! I also think that Greiss was just a stop-gap back-up with both Staylock and Salteri coming up.

On D, I agree with Gdub….what did we lose with Blake going, other than experience. He was smart enough to know when to quit, as he was slowing down. We’ve got some good kids in the system, and look for Brandon Mashinter to state a strong case on wing in the pre-season, provide his skating has picked up…..22 goals, 19 assists and 10 winning fights with some tough customers in the A…..

Breakaway

Tim Liao: The way you paint the picture, what the heck is one Dman going to do?

Tealfist

#46 Beerslayer –

No need to niitpick…

.

AE

#63: “On D, I agree with Gdub….what did we lose with Blake going, other than experience.”

I don’t think it’s just replacing Blake, but improving the overall D with more good players. You can’t have enough good D-men, and a goalie has an easier workload (and/or doesn’t have to be as good) if the other team isn’t getting good shots to the net.

danryn2742

I know all we lost for D is Blake. Maybe people are thinking that while our D isn’t bad, it isn’t as deep as the other teams we are competing against in the conference. Van, Chi, etc?

icehawkey

as a goalie myself and studentof the position i read goallie mags scour the internet take part in goalie forums and track goalies all over the worl esp in the nhl. frank has shined on really shitty teams in reg season. niemi has shined in post season. technique concentration and skill wise i think nitti is a little better if you watch and look at most stats and consider the awful teams he played on. but niemi did it under huge pressure in chitown so he obviously has a special ability to rise to the occasion, unlike our overpriced overplayed over the hill goalie last year. griess is barely a backup and not nhl caliber. staylock is on the cusp and has the potential to be an all star in the nhl. i think the crease is safe. we can move one our goalies now if we get a shot a top dman when some team loses a tender to injury or poor play. maybe one finn goalie and a prospect for pronger and boucher? our d has boiler and demers who move the ppuck and get points. we have good stay at home solid guy in pickles and to a lesser degree huskins. we have a semi shut down footsteps in your head heavy hitter in cranky and a crappy overpaid slow mistake prone wallin. what we need is the vet presence capt hook provided last yr but with some actual legs. this sigming will lead to getting that very dman. mark my words. nabby and blake were old slow and expensive. thats sports.

Same O. Saymo

I agree with mr. Liao. The d is the problem that has not been addressed. Blake was no good, he was only big. He took dumb penalties and had a weak slap shot that he took every chance he could. Murray is too slow, Vlasic is no good, and even Boyle made a lot of mistakes jumping in. Other than that we have little depth and could be one or two injuries from disaster at the blue line.

egt

if Niemi was so great, the Hawks would have moved other players to keep him. and other teams would have jumped at him when he became a UFA. the fact that those 2 things did not happen suggest that Niemi is a good goalie but not a franchise player. he is a playoff upgrade, and that is the key issue.

icehawkey

wanna bet who the new warriors ownership group hires to run the team in a month or so? hint: he just turned 60, feels 40 and looks 80 and still owns part of a hockey team.

egt

agree with much of what #68 says, except the part about getting Pronger. there is zero chance that DW wants to acquire a contract that will stay on the cap even if he retires in a few years. he signed it when over 35, so it remains on the cap whether he plays or not. no way the penurious sharks would take on that type of financial liability. and the flyers have no intention of moving him anyway.

ice

All are at different stages of their careers, each has something left to prove
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what does niemi have left to prove? the guy won the the cup. thats it. there’s nothing left to prove imo.

although it’d be great if he could help the sharks get there.

pac northwest

I guess it’s that slow time of the hockey year in which nothing seems to happen for weeks. But real games in less than a month!

GP

Sorry Y, I don’t have white hair yet. LOL!

GP

Niemi’s career: about 23 PO games

about 42 reg season games…..

All in less than 2 seasons.

That’s it.

Flash in the pan? Or a real Goal Tenderer.

GP

Pronger’s contract, Hossa’s contract, a few others are actually under investigation with still a chance for them for the balance to be nullified somehow.

You can bet that the Hawks would not mind if Hossa’s debacle of a contract is cancelled, IMO.

If Pronger’s is nullified, by all means DW, go after him.

NickG

If Pronger became a Shark and we cheered him I think the world would come to an end. I read somewhere that if that ever happened, it was the first sign of the apocalypse.

vonmerpf

If Pronger becomes a Shark, I stop watching hockey. No joke, I hate the guy that much.

GO SHARKS!

GP

LOL !!!!!

BDub

If Pronger becomes a Shark, we get that much closer to winning the cup. I’m all for that not to mention he immediately becomes our best defenseman. What’s wrong with that..or would you rather stand on principle?

egt

the league just today approved the Kovalchuk revised contract. 15 years, $100m. 15 years still puts kovalsuck into his forties.

and they got an agreement with the union for future contracts. but current deals are most likely going to be allowed

egt

and even D Wilson was involved in aiding and abetting cap circumvention on behalf of cheater Lou before. remember the malakhov phony deal? he was unable to play, but had a big cap hit, so Lou sent him to the sharks who had cap room.

all this crap should be stopped.

for one thing, the contracts should not be averaged for the cap hit. it should be what you pay is what you get charged on the cap that year.

Teejay

Did you hear about the two Finnish goalies that thought a Polaroid was something you get from sitting on a cake of ice????

Snow Shovel

David, is it too early to ask who is at practice. I’m interested in who gets invited up from Worcester. And this next is absolutely pure speculation on my part, but is there any chance Blake is out there skating? Maybe seeing how his body feels and possibly mulling over another season?

We Almost

Only way Blake would come back is if he overpaid him for a 3rd straight season. And I for one don’t want to see capt hook, and his overrated play ever back in a Sharks uniform.

If the silver haired guy goes to the Warriors, expect the Warriors to not be able to sign free agents, and start getting cheap with fans.

For practice, it is to early for David, he is still on vacation, and still has not even mentioned anything about captain’s practice, rookie practices and regular season practices. He is too busy telling us what he did all summer.

BoiseEd

IMO, the ideal solution would be to trade Niittymaki to some desperate team. Greiss is only 24 and Niemi is about 30, so if we give Greiss enough games to keep him interested, he’d be a natural replacement as Niemi gets older. I’d be sorry to dash Niittymaki’s hopes, but this would be best for the team.

I also wonder what Nabokov’s thoughts are about this situation. I’m sure his head hasn’t simply moved on yet.

http://www.mercurynews.com Ptsharker

This move has not improve the team. Goaltending was not the problem. All those Nabby haters expected Nabby to stop the puck and score at the same time. The teams problem is they don’t want it more than their opponents. For whatever reason they forget how to shoot the puck. Neimi will be beaten upstairs and nittimaki is weak there also. The reason Chicago won the cup was because they shoot the puck upstairs. Look back at the goals scored 2 were down low. Nabby wasn’t able to see both of them coming. Nabby has to make 4-5 stops. Before the other team can get it by him. Good Luck Nabby, I appreciate what you’ve done for this organization. You deserved better.

Alaskan_ice

It would seem to me that most if not all goalies are beat upstairs more times than not.

GP

Niemi
BIRTHDATE: Aug 29, 1983 (AGE 27)

Nittymaki
BIRTHDATE: Jun 18, 1980 (AGE 30)

Just sayin’

GP

Chompov,

“Wasn’t this guy awful in the regular season last year? The two Chicago goalies couldn’t save anything…”

If you’re talking of Niemi, I doubt NHL goalies go 27-8-5 if your team has to outscore the opponent every night. The other stats weren’t half bad either.

get real 88. just look at the playoff series vs chi. Niemi was better than your little idol .those soft goals early in games like the ladd goal said it all, and clearly made up DW’s mind right then and there that enough was enough

icehawkey

the SHARKS have LIONS in net! finnish lions that is. problem is we aint got a goalie coach that knows the lion style. hell wayne thomas doesnt even know the butterfly style. we need a modern goalie coach. we havent had a decent one since the legendary warren strelow died. weve got corey schwab in wooster but we need one here.

I will always remember Cheechoo’s time in San Jose. He always gave all he had and was very exciting to watch! I hope he gets his mojo back….just wish he were still in San Jose. Good luck, Cheech! Miss you!!

Really looking forward to the new season….should be very interesting to see how the goalie situation develops and who will fill the empty spot on D.

Same O. Saymo

Cheechoo was a wank who stood in front of the net a took feeds from Joe thornton one season, just like seto tried to do the next. Anyone coiled see he had no scoring talent. The Richard trophy actually hurt them from trading him at his highest value. This is why they should trade seto now. Cheechoos “injury” was his decline? No they took him off thorntons line. He won’t ever be back; he was never any good. The sharks are probably still paying off Ottawa for taking him.

FreeCell

Same O. Saymo says:
September 4th, 2010 at 6:16 pm

Cheechoo …blah blah… The sharks are probably still paying off Ottawa for taking him.

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Wrong again, banned loser eddie. According to nhl.com news archives:

Sens buy out final year of RW Cheechoo’s contract
Tuesday, 06.29.2010

The Ottawa Senators are buying out the final year of forward Jonathan Cheechoo’s contract.

One day after waiving the 2006 winner of the Maurice Richard Trophy, when Cheechoo scored an NHL-best 56 goals, the Senators said Tuesday that they are cutting the 29-year-old winger loose.

Cheechoo was set to earn $3.5 million next season. After he cleared waivers, the Senators were allowed to buy him out.